Display-sign.



PATENTBD NOV. 29, 1904.

J. WARD. DISPLAY SIGN. APPLICATION FILED JULY 23, 1904.

N0 MODEL.

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Inven Ems Witese PATENTED NOV. 29, 1904 J. WARD. DISPLAY SIGN.

ArrpmA'non FILED JULY 23, 1904.

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Witnesses Httomegs UNTTED STATES Patented November 29, 1904.

PATENT OEEICE.

DISPLAY-SIGN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No."776,278, dated November29, 1904.

Application filed July 23, 1904:. Serial No. 217,896. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J OSEPHVWARD, a citizen of the United States,residing at WVellston, in the county of Jackson and State of Ohio, haveinvented a new and useful Display-Sign, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to display-signs, and has for its principalobject to provideanovel form of sign of that general class in which awind-wheel or some similar element is utilized for moving parts of thesign with a view of attracting attention.

One of the principal objects of the invention is to provide a sign inwhich a number of lamps of varying color are so arranged as todisseminate light-rays at different times, the constantly-changingcolors being particularly attractive at night.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved means foroperating the sign and controlling the electric circuits.

A still further object of the invention is to provide, in connectionwith the sign, a windmill carrying a light or lights on each of itsvanes, said lights being alternately ignited and extinguished as thevanes revolve.

With these and other objects in view, as will more fully hereinafterappear, the invention consists of the novel construction and arrangementof parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it beingunderstood that various changes in the form, proportions, size, andminor details of the structure may be made without departing from thespirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of a display-signconstructed in accordance with the invention, a portion of the signbeing broken away. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the sign, showingprincipally the construction of the wind-wheel. Fig. 3 is a detailperspective view of a portion of the circuit-controlling device. Fig. 4is a detail perspective view illustrating the mechanism I for adjustingthe position of the sign proper with respect to the frame. Fig. 5 is adiagram of the electrical connections. Fig. 6 illustrates aslightmodification in which an electric motor is employed forcontrolling the movable parts of the sign. Fig. 7 is a detail view, on aslightly-enlarged scale, illustrating the preferred form of sign. tailsectional view of the main gear, showing the contactstrips.

Similar characters of reference are employed to indicate thecorresponding parts throughout the several ligures of the drawings.

The various working parts of the sign are mounted on a suitable base orsupport, a base B being employed in the present instance, and from thisextends an upright shaft 1, carrying all of the movable parts of thesign.

The main frame of the sign comprises a base-block 2 and a plurality ofparallel standards 3, 4E, and 5, which may be formed of either wood ormetal. The shaft 1 extends upward through the base and between thestandards 3 and 4; to a cross-bar 6, that is rigidly secured to the twostandards 3 and 4:, and this shaft forms the center of movement aroundwhich the whole sign may revolve. At the top of the standards 3 and 4:is a pair of arms 7, serving as supports for a cross-bar 8, from whichdepends a short tube 9, carrying an incandescent lamp 10, or in placeswhere an electric lamp is not available a gas or oil lamp may beemployed. This lamp is surrounded by a globe 11, which may be andpreferably is of colored glass; but said globe may be painted or maybear the name of the owner of the sign. The globe is mounted on a smallturn-table 12, that is carried by a vertical shaft 14, adapted to upperand lower bearings 14 and 15, respectively, both of such bearings beingcarried by the standards 3 and 1. On this shaft is a small bevel-gear16, receiving motion from the windmill or other source and serving torevolve the globe around the lamp. 1

The two standards land 5 are provided with bearing-openings for ahorizontal shaft 17, the end member of said shaft being also in abearing-opening formed in a vertically-extending portion of the bracketor cross-bar 15, and to said shaft is secured a bevel-gear 1S,intermeshing with the gear 16. From the hub 19 of the shaft projects anumber of vanes or arms 20, arranged at a suitable angle,

Fig. 8 is a deso that when facing the wind the vanes will be revolved,with the shaft 17 as a center. Each of the vanes 20 is provided at itsouter end with a lamp-socket 21, in which is placed an incandescent lamp22, and extending from the socket to the hub is a tube 23, through whichthe current-conducting wires 24 and 25 may extend, all of the wires24-being connected to an annular contact-strip 26, secured to the end ofthe hub, while all of the Wires 25 are similarly connected to acontact-strip 27 arranged concentric with the strip 26. The two stripsare extended completely around the axle. With these strips engagerollers 28 and 29, respectively, said rollers being formed of conductingmaterial and carried by suitable brackets 30, that are respectivelyconneoted to current-conducting wires 32 and 33.

-During the rotation of the wind-wheel the lights carried by the vanesglow constantly. and in this way the sign may be made attractive,particularly if the lamps are of different color.

To the base B is secured a pair of disks 35 and 36, formed of copper orother suitable material and insulated from each other. One of thesedisks is connected to a main conductor m and the other to areturn-conductor y.

' The revolving sign has a pair of depending brackets 40, having rollers41, which engage these disks and serve after the manner ofcommutator-brushes for conveying the current from the main lines to theseveral lamps. The inner portion of the shaft 17 carries a pinion 43,which intermeshes with a gear-wheel 44, mounted in suitable bearingscarried one by the main standard 4 and another by an auxiliary bracket45. This gear-wheel is normally protected by a cover-plate 46, having aslotted upper portion 47, through which extends an arm 48, carried by arocker-shaft 49, on which is mounted a bell 50. The wheel is providedwith a number of pins 51, adapted to engage the rocker-arm 48, and eachtime one of the pins passes the rocker-arm the alarm will be sounded.

The two faces of the gear-wheel 44 are each provided with three sets ofcurved contactstrips 49', 50, and 51, corresponding strips of each pairbeing connected by tie rods or bolts 52, that extend through the disk,and these strips may be of the same or of different length, andpreferably are arranged to occupy arcs of about one hundred and twentydegrees each. With the outer sets of strips engage rollers 53, formed ofconducting material and carried by pivotally-mounted springpressed arms55, that are supported by the standard 45. The inner strip members areengaged by rollers 56, carried by pivotallymounted spring-pressed arms57, that are carried by the standard 4, so that as the gearwheelrevolves circuits may be established from the rollers on one side tothose on the opposite side, the circuit being continued so long as therollers are in contact with the strips: but when the ends of the stripspass beyond the rollers the circuit is broken. The outer brushes 53 areconnected in multiple with the wires 32 and 33, while the inner brushes56 are connected to suitable lamps carried by the display-sign proper.The sign 60 is formed of a preferably metallic frame that is pivotallyconnected to the main frame of the device and constitutes in part a vanefor holding the wind-wheel in position when facing the wind and servingalso as a speed-regulator, the vane being connected to the base 2 by apivotally-mounted notched bar 61 and pin 62, so that by varying theangular relation of the vane and frame the wind-wheel may be presentedto the wind at any desired angle, and thus vary the effective force ofthe wind thereon.

The two sides of the frame 60 are formed of metal or wood and are spacedfrom each other a distance of three or four inches, so as to permit theintroduction between them of incandescent lamps of ordinary size, theinner frame members being provided with sockets 63 for convenience ininserting and removing the lamps 64.

The two sides of the sign are provided with display advertisements, ofwhich the letters are formed of translucent material, such as glass, andthis material may be of different color, or the lamps may be ofdifferent color in order to vary the effect.

On the exterior of the sign, around its top, bottom, and outer edge, arelamp-sockets 65, in which are placed lamps 66, also of difierent color.The inner lamps 64 and outer lamps 66 are electrically connected in setsby wires 67, 68, and 69 to the contact-strips 49, 50, and 51 and wires53 and 55. As the contactstrips do not extend the entire distance aroundthe wheel, there will be only a certain number of the lamps glowing atone time, the remaining lamps being cutout, and by properly distributingthe lamps and by arranging their colors the effectiveness of the signmay be greatly increased.

It is obvious that the sign may be used in many places, whether exposedto the wind or not, and if not exposed to the wind the sign may bedriven by any suitable motor, being driven by water, air, gas, or otherpower, and in the present instance Fig. 6 illustrates the application ofa small electric motor for this purpose.

In Fig. 7 is illustrated the preferred form of sign, the letters beingformed of translucent glass of one color and surrounded by pieces ofglass of contrasting colors in much the same manner as stained-glasswindows are constructed.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is- 1. In adisplay-sign, a revoluble frame, an illuminated sign forming a vane andcontrol ling revoluble movement of the frame, arevoluble member carriedby said frame and including a plurality of vanes and acentral hub,incandescent lamps carried by the vanes, electric contacts secured toand movable with the revoluble member, said contacts being in circuitwith the lamps, stationary contacts with which the movable contactsengage, breaking the circuit stationary contacts. I

2. In a display-sign, a frame revoluble on a vertical axis, a wind-wheelmounted on a horizontally-disposed axis, a sign forming a vane for thewind-wheel, incandescent lamps adjacent to the sign, a source ofelectrical energy in circuit with the lamps, and means controlled by thewind-wheel for making and breaking the circuit.

3. In a display sign, a frame revoluble around a vertical axis, awind-wheel, a vane mounted on a hollow frame arranged for the display ofadvertising matter, incandescent lamps in said frame, a circuitconnecting said lamps to a source of electrical energy, and circuitmaking and breaking devices controlled by the wind-wl1eel.

4:. In a display-sign, a frame mounted for movement around averticalaxis, awind-Wheel, a hollow frame forming a display-sign and serving asavane for the wind-wheel,incandescent lamps disposed in several setswithin the frame, a source of electrical energy with which the lamps areconnected in multiple, and a plurality of sets of circuit making andbreaking devices controlled by the wind-wheel.

5. In a display-sign, a frame mounted for revoluble movement around avertical axis, a wind-wheel, a hollow frame forming a displaysign andserving asa vane for the wind-wheel, lampsockets arranged both on theinterior and rim of the frame, lamps carried by .the sockets, a wheel ordisk revolved by the windwheel, a plurality of sets of arcuatecontactstrips carried by said wheel or disk, stationary contactsconnecting the sets of strips to the lamps, and a second set of contactsalso engaging the arcuate strips and connected to a source of electricalenergy.

6. In a display-sign, a frame, awind-whecl supported by the frame, acontact-carrying wheel movable by the wind-wheel, a plurality of sets ofarcuate contacts arranged on both sides of the wheel, and connected inpairs, a plurality of sets of stationary contacts engaging said arcuatecontacts and connected to a source of electrical energy, a plurality ofsets of incandescent lamps carried by the sign, and a second series ofstationary contacts connected to the lamps and engaging said arcuatecontacts.

7. The combination in a display-sign, of a support, a vertical shaftmounted on such support, a pair of revoluble contacts carried by theshaft, a pair of stationary contacts carried by the support, electricalconductors connected to the support-carried contacts, a frame mounted onthe shaft and including a plurality of vertical standards, a secondvertical shaft supported by the frame, a lamp-bracket carried by thestandards, a lamp secured to the bracket, a lamp-globe carried by andrevoluble with said second shaft, a wind-wheel supported by the frame,gearing connections between the Wind-wheel and the second shaft, acontact-carrying disk on the Wind-Wheel, lamps carried by the vanes ofthe Wind-Wheel and electrically connected to the contacts of the disk,eurrent-conductors engaging said contacts, and a sign forming a vane forcontrolling the revoluble movement of the frame, substantially asspecified.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

JOSEPH WARD.

I/Vitnesses: I

LIBBE MoNAUeH'roN, OSCAR CLARK.

